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I just found a couple small bumps on my cat's stomach while I was petting her. I wasn't sure if it was something stuck in her fur or something more like a scab but my husband managed to pull a couple of them off. They were about an inch apart and I felt at least a couple more on her before she ran away, but it not in any sort of arrangement that would suggest a rash. She's already going to the vet by coincidence on Friday, but in the meantime any idea what they might be? They didn't seem to bother her at all, she just got tired of us fussing over her. 
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Feb 8, 2017 01:24
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KasioDiscoRock posted:I just found a couple small bumps on my cat's stomach while I was petting her. I wasn't sure if it was something stuck in her fur or something more like a scab but my husband managed to pull a couple of them off. They were about an inch apart and I felt at least a couple more on her before she ran away, but it not in any sort of arrangement that would suggest a rash. She's already going to the vet by coincidence on Friday, but in the meantime any idea what they might be? They didn't seem to bother her at all, she just got tired of us fussing over her. Those are probably inverted nipple junk. When cats have inverted nipples, gunk often builds up in the indentation becoming a weird pseudo-nipple that then can fall off/be picked off/weird out owners.
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Feb 8, 2017 01:36
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Lareine posted:Those are probably inverted nipple junk. When cats have inverted nipples, gunk often builds up in the indentation becoming a weird pseudo-nipple that then can fall off/be picked off/weird out owners.  Well I found them in the right places to be nipple junk, I had no idea that was a thing but my roommate is throughly grossed out now! Thanks for the quick response.
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Feb 8, 2017 01:46
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Deviant posted:https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004VGIGVY Also, does anyone know how much noise a filter like this makes?
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Feb 8, 2017 04:14
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So I had a cat named Cooper who recently passed due to a undefined illness (we took him up to 3 different vets over the course of 6 months several times each- nothing seemed to be working and said vets couldn't figure out what was wrong with him either). His Siamese sister is perfectly fine though and we were concerned about her getting lonely and rescued a chocolate himmie as a result. Kirby, the new guy is super shy but slowly coming out of his shell more and more for brush time and everything and the lil guy is sweet as can be (he stumbles a lot when he's being brushed from leaning into it too much  ) Sam, the Siamese though really does not like him. She'll sit in the same room with him, ignore him for the most part and hell doesn't mind walking around him but each time she gets too close to him she hisses and darts off to go play with something else or just to start running as that's what she does. I'm no longer keeping them separated as they've never fought (Kirby is way too timid to fight anyway) and they've stayed alone together for periods of time just fine but it's getting kind of old having her hiss at him whenever he's sitting near a doorway she wants to go through. Kirby doesn't even react, he just looks confused.This has been going on for 2 weeks now and Sam is slowly starting to grow more hostile towards me. She'll bunt me and want petting but as soon as I touch her she does this low growl. I move my hand away and she'll reach out and pull my hand back to her for more so she can keep growling and man I don't know what she wants anymore. She rarely comes into my room as well and when she does she just lays around growling and meowing at literally nothing. In the past when I've had duo's of cats they've all bonded surprisingly fast (span of a few days etc) so I'm not quite used to how long this is taking. This is uh, normal right?  Lil guy is super cute and would hope the two got along eventually.
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Feb 8, 2017 07:31
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Varies! My cats took months to get along.
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Feb 8, 2017 07:55
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After we moved, our cat got uses to the house faster than we did. As it was a lot bigger than the apartment we got a second cat to fill the space, Cleo only hissed once at the newcomer and that was because the new kid, Raja, tried to get into the cat house she was in. Raja has been here for a week now and is finally starting to trust us. The cats have been playing together since day 4, but it took 3 more days for Raja to let me pet her. We did ask the shelter if they had a non-dominant cat, though, because Cleo is a wimp.
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Feb 8, 2017 08:41
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Synthbuttrange posted:Varies! My cats took months to get along. Fair enough! Mostly worried because she's sending *me* mixed messages more then anything. She wants me to pet her but entire time she's growling and being prissy about it.
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Feb 8, 2017 08:48
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Propaganda Machine posted:Sorry for doublepost. Meant to be neater. Failed. *hugs youuuu* I'm sorry I really really am  I honestly am, I wish I could say more but I really wanted to offer my condolences at least  Also, to the situation ThisIsACoolGuy is going though, it took six solid months for my two cats (females ~4 and ~10 years old) to get along. And it was constantly 2 steps forward, 1 step back, and a really intense ride. Up until then, me and Jackie (the 10 year old) had lived together with no other pets for 6 years and we were very close, to the point where no matter how I tried to provoke or play with her at times Jackie simply would *never* bit, hiss, or growl at me, Well, yeah - that changed after I adopted Sardine, and Jackie would go through phases just resenting me BIG TIME, inexplicably hating on Sardine who spent all her time on top of the fridge where Jackie was too fat to jump to. But on the rare occasions Sardine would venture out, Jackie would be chasing her and hissing and spitting and growling, and Sardine was just freaked out completely (even though me and Jackie had technically moved into Sardine's house, since she was the cat of the previous tenants). Anyway, it's six months later and all 3 of us get along fantastically. Sardine hasn't gone near the fridge in months, and in the last few weeks they have finally started cuddling on the couch together and sleeping in cat piles  I never thought or imagined they would EVER get along even close to this well.
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Feb 8, 2017 12:33
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Feliway is a godsend for cats who aren't quite getting along, it's a wall plug in that sends happytime cat pheromones to calm down the grumpy one. If she's annoyed at Kirby (Nice catname+avatar combo) then make sure you aren't petting her when you're covered in Kirby-scent, like directly after petting him. It sounds stupid but you may want to wash your hands before trying to pet her and see if that helps with the growling. It may not but it did when I had a very grumpy kitty who didn't like a new guy, until they got used to each other. They may never become best buddies but they'll sort it out and one day three years later you'll see them on the same bed sleeping and go O-M-G COEXISTENCE.
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Feb 8, 2017 13:18
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New to this stuff, but is there a rule of thumb on how often you should completely change out the cat litter? For my cats I bought BLUE Naturally Fresh Multi-Cat Quick-Clumping Formula. The box says it is recommended that you clean and sanitize your litter box every 30 days to maintain a fresh and healthy litter box for your cat. I saw a Jackson Galaxy video saying that's crap and that it can lasts months if you scoop every day (which I do), and cats should have a place that smells like them. It's been about 6 weeks since I got my cats. I've refilled the boxes with more litter a couple times since then to maintain about a 3 inch depth. Now it seems like the litter doesn't clump as well. The clumps break apart when I try and scoop it, and the box smells like pee (I have booda domes, which probably doesn't help since it traps the smell in). Should I have been religiously changing out the litter every 30 days, or wait until it gets like this? Also, is there a favorite litter brand you guys like in this thread? I have the budget to pay for more premium stuff. I probably want to buy another box too, do you guys have a favorite style/brand for boxes?
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Feb 8, 2017 18:02
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Raimondo posted:the box smells like pee Personal experience with a pissy girl cat says: no, change it before it gets like that. I've had boy cats who are very tolerant of letting it go, but downside: box smells like pee. I've been using Swheat Scoop for years. Flushable litter rules. No bags of cat poo poo ever. Changed to using boxes with tops that don't have roofs, just three high sides. Keeps the litter from going quite so everywhere, but I can scoop without taking the top off and the cats seem to approve. More room for tails and things. Gorgar fucked around with this message at 18:18 on Feb 8, 2017 |
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Feb 8, 2017 18:15
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Deviant posted:Also, does anyone know how much noise a filter like this makes? I have this one and at its lowest setting, it's more of a pleasant hum than anything else. It makes for a nice white noise machine on the second setting, and I only use the highest setting when we're not home because my boyfriend thinks it's too loud (I don't mind it and can tune it out, ymmv). I also have very bad cat allergies and live in a carpeted apartment with a cat, and this air filter has definitely made a difference - it's running in my bedroom 24/7. I have another filter in the living room too. I agree that vacuuming is important - if I haven't vacuumed in a few days, I start to wake up with sinus headaches. Get a vacuum with a hepa filter and use the premium allergen-trapping vacuum bags. You can also get special mattress and pillow protectors (I use ones made by Allerease), just make sure they're for pet allergens. Those have really helped with my cat allergy/dust mite allergy combo. Allergy shots can be very effective in reducing or even eliminating pet allergies, if that's an option. Her doctor will tell you that the best thing is to keep the cat out of the bedroom, of course, but sometimes kitty has a different opinion on the matter (and maybe so do you).
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Feb 8, 2017 18:30
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I use world's best unscented litter. It's flushable but I use a litter genie instead since I feel like flushing that much is wasteful. It is corn based and that's a lot better on the environment than clay mining, pretty low dust too. I only have to empty the litter genie every week and a half or so and the bag refills are cheap. No problems with smells or anything, highly recommended. I have two boxes right next to each other. The original starter small covered box with a door which was ok but I had to scoop 3 times a day otherwise the cat would poo on the litter mat and one about double the size, enclosed, but with the door taken off. With the door on, she's more likely to use the small box since I assume it keeps more smells in. Milly primarily uses the big box unless its been a busy day and I missed a scooping, then she'll use the smaller one as a backup. If she suddenly stops using the big one, it'll be time for a cleaning (hasn't happened yet). I had to fresh clean the small one almost weekly but that was more due to runny poos and splatter while trying to nail down a food that agreeed with her. Since the last food change 1.5 months ago there have been no problems and the small one rarely gets touched. My boss has the most enormous litter tray I've ever seen. It's size of a kids sandbox, holds more than 40lbs of litter and he scoops it maybe once or twice a week.
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Feb 8, 2017 18:53
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For me having an air filter really did not make much difference. What works is vacuuming a lot (seconding the bag type vacuum with HEPA filter) and wiping the dander off the cats fairly frequently. (Allerpet is what I use but even a wet washcloth helps.) I have grown pretty used to my cats after a few years so don't have many problems until pollen season and then I have to get back into the Allerpet habit again just to get the pollen off them. Other things that help if you do let the cat(s) into the bedroom are to change the pillowcases every night and wash the duvet cover regularly. When my allergies are bad I also cover the furniture with sheets and wash them once a week. Better to look silly than to feel miserable... Allegra and allergy shots have helped for me also.
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Feb 8, 2017 19:21
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The problem is she can't take anything antihistamine based because she has epilepsy so it's all on me to mitigate and fix.
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Feb 8, 2017 19:56
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Awww, poor baby. Hopefully an air filter can help with the situation! My little assholes have settled into being a bunch of punk 9 month olds, and they just decided that sleeping through the night is for losers. We're entering the kitten wars, where equivalent force is the norm. I pity my boyfriend, who has never had a cat before, let alone two cheerful teenage kittens. It's... uh. Fun?
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Feb 8, 2017 21:26
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Dang, no antihistamines makes it rough. I have used nasal washes and steroid nasal sprays and they both help with sinus symptoms. Maybe she can try those.
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Feb 8, 2017 21:33
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Air filter efficacy will also depend on how ventilated or closed-off the room is. If you open your windows a lot it won't work as well. Also, if you have central heat/AC get the vents cleaned and install allergen filters. Those made a big difference for me at my parents' house, moreso than the room air filter. There are non-antihistamine eye drops, too, although they may be prescription only.
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Feb 8, 2017 23:39
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Robo Kitty posted:Air filter efficacy will also depend on how ventilated or closed-off the room is. If you open your windows a lot it won't work as well. Also, if you have central heat/AC get the vents cleaned and install allergen filters. Those made a big difference for me at my parents' house, moreso than the room air filter. Not familiar with the drops. But I do plan to upgrade the air filter. Totally forgot about it since the apartment provides. Wouldn't bet on them cleaning the vents though
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Feb 9, 2017 15:59
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I'm looking into buying a Feliway diffuser, and some Amazon reviews seem to indicate that there's a difference between CEVA refills and Comfort Zone refills? Is this the case or is it just cat owners being cat owners?
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Feb 9, 2017 16:50
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I checked the OP and it just backed up my original thought but I'm going to post anyway. We just moved into a new apartment after living at home in my dads basement+two floor house where our cat had free reign so there was always a place to wander and a window to look out of into a 850 sq ft apartment and I'm like 90% positive he's just getting really really bored. He isn't pooping anywhere or being destructive but while he used to lay around and let me just calmly pet him for long periods of time anymore he quickly goes to teeth and claws. I'm going to get him some sort of cat tree or tall shelf to climb and sit on but I'd like something he can play with throughout the day so that I get my calm relaxed cat back and not deal with the hyper pointy cat. Any suggestions?
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Feb 9, 2017 23:20
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Len posted:I checked the OP and it just backed up my original thought but I'm going to post anyway. Well, cat trees and using vertical space is definitely your friend. Also, I know that windows are likely at a premium, but set up a place where your cat can sit directly in front of the window and watch the outdoors - that's like Cat TV for them. I also made it a point to open the window and let her gaze out of the screen and feel the fresh air whenever possible. Also, there is just going to be a natural period of adjustment! You just moved, and cats in general freak out a bit when they move. Give your cat some time to adjust, and he'll mellow out and just get used to living in a smaller space soon. Cats truly are among the best of the species when it comes to adapting to survive and thrive in all different kinds of environments, something I am sure we are all aware of. Even fickle, spoiled house-cats are good at it in their own way! The only permanent annoying habit my cat developed when we shared a studio apartment was a tendency to meow and scratch at the corners of the room on rare occasions, but it always made me feel upset and like some cruel prison keeper. Then she'd curl up next me purring and we'd both feel better,
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Feb 10, 2017 01:16
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My two guys made the adjustment from a 1400sq house to a 400sq apartment with a 25hr plane trip in between with minimum fuss, cats are resilient creatures. Yours will adjust.
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Feb 10, 2017 01:49
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One of our cats has a rather deep scratch inside one of her ears. We're not sure if she just scratched herself too hard or if one of the other cats did it because it happened while we were asleep. It doesn't appear to be dangerous, but she keeps scratching at it and bleeding, but we can't afford to take her to the vet until our taxes come in. Is there anything we can do to get her to leave it alone until we can get professional help, or is this an emergency situation?
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Feb 10, 2017 04:30
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RaspberryCommie posted:One of our cats has a rather deep scratch inside one of her ears. We're not sure if she just scratched herself too hard or if one of the other cats did it because it happened while we were asleep. Is it healing properly? You should check for ear mites or infection, it might be time for some polysporin or similar (if those are cat safe). Seat Safety Switch fucked around with this message at 04:43 on Feb 10, 2017 |
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Feb 10, 2017 04:40
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Seat Safety Switch posted:Is it healing properly? You should check for ear mites or infection, it might be time for some polysporin or similar (if those are cat safe). It heals just fine yeah, but she keeps scratching the scab off and reopening it. I suggested making a cone but we don't really have anything that'd work. We tried putting some gauze around it to maybe keep her from scratching it but even after using medical tape to keep it on she still worked it off. As far as we can tell she doesn't have mites or an infection at least. We're doing our best to keep it clean until we can take her into the vet.
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Feb 10, 2017 04:46
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RaspberryCommie posted:It heals just fine yeah, but she keeps scratching the scab off and reopening it. Some people make cones out of paper or fabric-- maybe you have an old pillowcase or some cereal boxes lying around you could use?
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Feb 10, 2017 04:58
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Well we're pretty sure Peridot and Pepper were just yowling at each other through a window (it's dark so it's hard to see) so I guess two weeks later she's still alive at least. I've put food near the cat carrier out the front of the house and I'm gonna check to see if she goes in there. Probably going to ask the back neighbour for her cat trap to set up tomorrow if that doesn't do the trick; it's a little late to ask right now. Of course if I do get her back I probably get to start the whole emotional rollercoaster again of her taking months to relearn that humans are okay I'm hoping she came back intentionally and still remembers that this is meant to be her territory at least.ETA: went outside and heard a creature scuttle away and the food was gone, so I put a bit more out. I figure she has a higher chance of hanging around if she knows there's food on offer, although I know it's not the recommended course of action and there are ants eating it too already. Organza Quiz fucked around with this message at 16:04 on Feb 11, 2017 |
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Feb 11, 2017 15:49
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My sister's old cat Marmie got out in a similar way once. She ran off and hid, and for months they'd get sightings of her around their neighborhood but could never catch her. Finally one day, after they'd long given up, Marmie turned up under their next door neighbor's porch. My sister was able to coax her up to the fence and grab her be the scruff while her husband ran around to grab the cat. The cat squalled and hollered and scratched and bit all the way back to the house. Once back safe inside, it was like a switch flipped. She chilled out, ate some food, and that night was hanging out on the couch with then again. Hopefully your experience is just as happy but even less dramatic.
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Feb 11, 2017 16:04
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Yeah the problem in my case is that Peridot took six months until she let me touch her and I've only had her another six months since then. She's absurdly skittish even in the house although she was growing more comfortable with me in particular as her main human. But for the last few days before she got out she was acting especially skittish, like slinking around the house low to the ground hugging walls like she didn't think it was safe territory. That's why I didn't have much hope she'd come home at all. I'm still not convinced she knows this is her place and wasn't just doing rounds of the neighbourhood looking for food. Anyway yeah hopefully the switch flips as much as it ever could with her and she remembers me but her trust in me was so shaky to start with that I'm not so sure. I'm also wondering how I'm going to get her to the vet which I imagine is a thing I'm going to want to do if I manage to catch her. Organza Quiz fucked around with this message at 17:01 on Feb 11, 2017 |
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Feb 11, 2017 16:07
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If you put the food dish on a plate with some water on it the ants won't be able to get to it. Best of luck! Rooting for your kitty to find her way home.
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Feb 11, 2017 17:30
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Deviant posted:Also, does anyone know how much noise a filter like this makes? I have this one. It has three settings. Setting 1 you can barely hear it. Setting 2 makes as much noise as a playstation 4 running with it's fan on high. Setting 3 is pretty loud, almost like a handheld vaccuum. I usually leave it on setting 2, and on setting 1 while I'm not home or at night, and it works pretty well.
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Feb 11, 2017 19:23
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I need to be told I'm a awful person. I have no idea what happened and I'm beating myself up over it super hard. My new cat Kirby was just found dead under my bed and my family can't figure out what the cause of death was. We adopted him from a Petsmart shelter a couple weeks ago and bought the food they suggested for him and have been introducing him to the house slowly over time- I even made a post earlier about him and my other cat. (Who as of yesterday was finally willing to stop hissing at him) This past Thursday I took him up to our local vet and had him checked out and updated on his shots and was told he was perfectly healthy and fine so was pretty happy about that. I've made sure personally that he's eating well and getting plenty of water and that he was using the litterbox whenever he had to go. Over time he began to trust us more and more and was finally at a point where he'd only go under my bed if it was time to nap. If I laid at the foot of my bed he'd look at me, come up to me and try to cuddle and go back to sleep and it was a thing. Today he even climbed into the bed to try to take a nap next to me, I was pretty thrilled! I just now came into my room to wind down and laid at the foot of the bed and noticed he wasn't even looking at me- I called his name tried to get his attention, nothing. Thankfully he was pretty close to the edge of my bed so I shrugged it off and decided I'd pet him and just let him rest, only when I felt him he was stiff as a board. I tried calling his name a few more times before gently pulling him out and he had just passed away at some point. I know for a fact he hadn't gotten into any chemicals because frankly we don't have any that he could reach (cleaning supplies and the like are all kept locked in high up shelves) and our house is clean so I just don't know what could of happened. I'm loving miserable right now because I'm clueless and I feel like I've missed something.
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Feb 12, 2017 08:02
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You are not an awful person. I'm sorry to hear you're going through such a horrible experience. Calling yourself horrible isn't going to make anybody feel any better though, and it won't help provide any solace or give any answers. You are not awful.
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Feb 12, 2017 08:08
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ThisIsACoolGuy posted:I need to be told I'm a awful person. I have no idea what happened and I'm beating myself up over it super hard. My new cat Kirby was just found dead under my bed and my family can't figure out what the cause of death was. 3 years ago I put one of my cats with their mother and brother in a kennel I keep in my backyard, I fed them, played with them for a little bit and went inside, last I looked at them it was midnight and they where just fine, the brothers where playing, when to check on them at 6am the floofier brother was dead, best guess from the vet was a stroke. Its just things that happen and not even the best vet could detect it. 
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Feb 12, 2017 08:08
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You're not an awful person, you're not a bad person, it could have just been his time unfortunately. Maybe the corona virus mutating into FIP, you said you didn't leave anything out that could have killed him so this is definitely not your fault. You did not condemn this cat to death. And it's horrible, because you feel like as their owner, they trust their life to you and when they die, you feel responsible. When Kite & I's cat Glam died, he had a clean bill of health previously, I felt horrible and thought that maybe he had somehow died because I decided to give him tuna. What's important to remember is that your cat didn't hide from you in another place. He went to the place where he always goes in order to get his sleeps, so obviously he loves you and trusts you since he decided that even if he was hurt, he went to that space because he felt safe there. It's nothing you did, it's not your fault, man. It's not your fault.
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Feb 12, 2017 08:13
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Thanks all, I just can't stop thinking about it because from everything I was told he was perfectly healthy and he wasn't acting abnormal or anything of the sort so I can't help but feel like it's my fault. Chest hurts like hell and I just wish I knew what caused this. I need to put my head down for awhile I think because my minds going a million miles per hour.
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Feb 12, 2017 08:21
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ThisIsACoolGuy posted:Over time he began to trust us more and more Remember this part. His time with you was terribly short and that sucks, but think of how much happier he was because you gave him a loving home.
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Feb 12, 2017 08:23
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Venting and mourning is good and healthy. If you want someone to vent to privately or a person to just listen to you vent or rant to, hit me up, I'm good for that stuff.
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Feb 12, 2017 08:24
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